Biochar
What is Biochar?
Biochar: An Ancient Method of Healing Modern Soils
Biochar doesn’t just store carbon – it stores water and boosts farmers’ drought resilience
Biochar enhances soil health and reduces atmospheric CO2 levels. It can also be a friend to soil microbes.
For information and examples of place-based biochar production, check out Kelpie Wilson’s presentation to the Biochar conference held in Sacramento: https://biochar-us.org/sites/default/files/presentations/USBI-NABC24_BITW-KelpieWilsonFeb12_BiocharWoods_spacetime.pdf. (PDF)
A recent General Technical Report was delivered by the Forest Service on this topic that outlines a variety of scenarios including mixed methods: https://research.fs.usda.gov/treesearch/67944.
Note that flame cap kilns are already in use both in Oregon and California without much issue; Kelpie Wilson from the links above is based in Oregon, and multiple folks in CA have been actively using her Ring of Fire Kilns.
Air curtain burners are in use in CA, it’s in OR and WA that the permitting pathways limit their economic viability. We’re hoping that the following announcement at the federal level helps, but it’s TBD what Ecology’s response is: http://biochar-us.org/title-v-permitting-air-curtains-updated.